As the new year rolls around, the world of Formula One will be seeing some big changes. Two automotive titans, Audi and Cadillac, will be entering the grid, bringing back two drivers along with it. Huge regulation changes will be put in place, and an entire new track being added to the schedule. 

First off, with the new season comes changes to teams and drivers, one of the bigger changes being the addition of the 11th team. Cadillac will be entering the championship bringing drivers Valtari Bottas alongside Sirgio Perez. The American based team are expected to perform, considering the skill of their two race-winning drivers Audi is next to join the grid, replacing Kick Sauber but still sporting the same drivers. Audi is a motorsport titan known for their rally and endurance championship titles. F1 will be the next huge step for the brand.

Moving on from teams and drivers stated Motorsport, the Formula One world championship will race on a brand new track. The Spanish Madring in Madrid will be the sport’s newest street circuit. The 5.5 kilometer track will host 22 turns for the drivers to learn and master.

Finally, Formula One will have a lot of new regulations coming to the car. To start, according to F1 cars will be smaller overall with reductions to the height, width, and length; this will allow the drivers to have more action on track and faster top speeds. F1 states some new improvements to the engines this year, some being the newer cars will have their Drag Reduction System (DRS) removed. In turn they will be replaced by Overtake Mode. Overtake Mode provides a boost in hybrid power allowing for faster top speeds down straights and will be activated when a driver is one second behind the car in front. With that, tracks will introduce new X and Z modes throughout different segments of the track. X-mode will be an option to have the front and rear wings opening, decreasing drag and allowing for faster speeds. Z-Mode will have those wings closed, in turn increasing grip around corners. A big change coming to the new regulations is Formula 1 going almost completely green, with 100% sustainable fuel being put into the 50/50 hybrid engines.

In conclusion, with all these new regulations, teams, and tracks, the 2026 season will seem to be interesting. The new regulations will push drivers to relearn a lot and fans could maybe see many new drivers on the podium.